Most big Australian companies are prepared to hire foreign workers to help deal with acute shortages of construction, trade, and engineering workers, a new survey has shown.
AAP reports the Australian Institute of Management National Salary Survey shows more than 70 per cent of large businesses said they would consider hiring overseas talent to deal with skills shortages.
More than half of the companies surveyed also said they were already employing foreign workers.
Last month the Federal Government granted approval to bring 1,700 foreign workers to Gina Rinehart's Roy Hill project in the Pilbara.
While the Government and parts of the business community stressed the initiative was necessary in order to get projects online and employ more Australians, the move sparked a furious response from unions and much of the working community.